Read the original Oct. 30 article on nj.com
Music from Italy filled the Fine Arts Pavilion at The Robert Treat Academy in Newark Wednesday as the Three Po' Tenors entertained guests at The North Ward Center's Puccini Festival.The event served up a wide variety of Italian music, ranging from Operatic selections from Giacomo Puccini's Turnadot, Madame Butterfuly and Ginani Schicchi to folk songs such as Mama, Torna a Surriento and Funiculu, Funicula.
"This is a wonderful event for the community to get together and enjoy beautiful music," said Fran Adubato, who organized the event. "Despite how Newark is sometimes portrayed in popular media, residents of the neighborhoods actually do get together to enjoy each others' company and appreciate the finer things in life."
The Three Po' Tenors formed not long after the real Three Tenors - Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti - collaborated for the in their first of many concerts at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome on July 7, 1990.
Deborah Baseil, a soprano who performs with the group, said the Three Po' Tenors jokingly picked their name because they didn't have much money at the time. The name stuck, she said.
Adubato said she hopes the event will become a tradition in the North Ward, once a bastion of Italian-Americans that has transformed over the years into a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood.
"This music transcends cultural and linguistic boundaries," Adubato said. "Puccini wrote much of his music in the 19th Century and yet here we are in the 21st Century, still listening to it."
Adrianne Davis, the executive director of The North Ward Center and the vice president of The Robert Treat Academy trustees, said the event is just one of many held by the center to bring the community together.
"The North Ward Center is well known for providing the highest quality services for preschool, elementary school, recreation, family services and adult care," Davis said. "But we also engage the community through cultural activities such as the Puccini Festival."
Donald Reid, a resident of Newark's Central Ward, said he thought the Puccini Festival was a great event for Newark.
"Even though others outside of Newark have certain perceptions of what the city is like, an event like this really shows that we are more than those stereotypes," Reid said. "Events like this make Newark a great place to live."
